SPIED: Mercedes-Benz A-Class facelift in Malaysia – three variants, including A250 Sport, A200 AMG Line

Aha! At long last, here are spyshots of the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class being transported on a trailer near IOI City Mall in Putrajaya. Thanks to Liam Lim, this photo gives us a clear preview of things to come from Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM).

No official information surround the model have been revealed yet, so we’ll have to wait until the facelifted W176 A-Class makes its official debut before confirming any final specifications. But based on the photo above, we can somewhat identify three potential variants to be launched here.

The first we’ll examine is the one riding way at the back, on the trailer’s upper deck. Based on the red strip that runs across the rear AMG Line bumper, it’s no secret that this is no other than the new A 250 Sport – the highest-spec A-Class money can buy under the mighty AMG A 45.

A like-for-like replacement for the current A 250 Sport we have in Malaysia, this variant will feature a full AMG Line exterior kit (front and rear bumpers, side sills) topped off with the obvious red trim on the bumpers, red-painted brake calipers and “Sport” badges on the front fenders. Its AMG 18-inch five-spoke alloy wheels are also clearly visible.

Interestingly, the A 250 Sport sets itself apart from its other “250” counterparts with an additional 7 hp from its 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbo engine. This improvement is unique to the Sport model alone, and as such, only the A 250 Sport offers it. The engine here produces 218 hp and 350 Nm of torque, a motivates the car more quickly off the line to perform the century sprint in 6.3 seconds, as opposed to 6.5 seconds previously.

A 7G-DCT seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is specified as standard, sending power exclusively to the front wheels here. An A 250 Sport 4Matic is available in other regions, but we expect MBM to maintain its current FWD configuration. Also similar to the current variant, the A 250 Sport will offer an AMG-tuned sport suspension, additionally lowered by 15 mm compared to the standard setup.

The next unit we can take a look at is the one directly beneath it, appearing to be an A-Class AMG Line variant. We can’t say which engine variant this is for sure because the badging at the rear is a bit too blurred to tell. Still, an AMG rear bumper is evident, and with it lacking a red strip as the model above, we can also count this out from being a similar Sport model.

As such, an AMG-specific front bumper, side sill attachments and rear bumper will be featured, along with a diamond radiator grille as standard included on all A-Class variants since the facelift was launched. The wheels are clearly different here being AMG multi-spoke alloys in a size we assume to be 18-inches.

The AMG Line exterior could also hint at the car featuring a sportier cabin theme and suspension too, but we’ll have to wait and see for further details. Could this slot in under the A 250 Sport as a replacement for the current A 200 Urban Line variant? An A 200 AMG Line doesn’t sound bad at all.

A third model, riding in the middle of the upper and lower decks calls out to our attention with its black-painted multi-spoke wheels and Urban Line rear bumper. Mercedes-Benz may have introduced a Style Line when it launched the facelifted A-Class with a similar bumper, but the chrome-finished exhaust tip is a giveaway of the Urban Line – there should be another one just like it on the other side of the vehicle, while the Style Line has its exhaust tips facing downward – unless of course a local adaptation has been made.

The high gloss-black finished belt-line strip and wing mirror covers is another giveaway, suggesting that the A-Class Urban Line here has also been fitted with a Night Package. The latter particularly consists of said items, plus a high-gloss black finish to the front and rear splitters. This could either be an A 200 Urban Line, or perhaps a new base variant for the A-Class. The latter is plausible, seeing that the larger C-Class will also get a new C 180 soon.

The remaining two units positioned way at the front of the trailer seem to be identical to the rear-most Sport and AMG Line vehicles, so nothing unique to note there. We know that Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s next big launch will be for the A-Class facelift, and we expect it to be just around the corner now.

GALLERY: Mercedes-Benz A 250 Sport

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